John Latham (ornithologist)
John Latham was an English physician, naturalist and author. His main works were A General Synopsis of Birds (1781–1801) and General History of Birds (1821–1828). He was able to examine specimens of Australian birds which reached England in the last twenty years of the 18th century, and was responsible for providing English names for many of them. He named some of Australia's most famous birds, including the emu, sulphur-crested cockatoo, wedge-tailed eagle, superb lyrebird, Australian magpie, magpie-lark and pheasant coucal. He was also the first to describe the hyacinth macaw. Latham has been called the "grandfather" of Australian ornithology.
Drawing of the red-tailed black cockatoo, a color plate from A General Synopsis of Birds (vol. 2, 1822)
The emu is a species of flightless bird endemic to Australia, where it is the largest native bird. It is the only extant member of the genus Dromaius and the second-tallest living bird after its African ratite relative, the common ostrich. The emu's native ranges cover most of the Australian mainland. The Tasmanian, Kangaroo Island and King Island subspecies became extinct after the European settlement of Australia in 1788.
Emu
Mounted emu skeleton
Adult and juvenile foot prints
Emus bathing on a very hot summer day in a shallow pond